Apple plans translucent look and hidden camera on iPhone 18 Pro screen
The Cupertino giant is orchestrating a profound redesign for its main line of smartphones, scheduled to hit the market in 2026. The most drastic changes involve the adoption of a partially transparent rear panel and the definitive retirement of the Dynamic Island notch, which will give way to a front lens embedded under the display. Far beyond the aesthetic renovation, the future generation will deliver significant leaps in photography, processing power and energy autonomy, consolidating Apple’s hegemony in the highly contested sector of high-end devices.
Even with this visual revolution on the way, the physical dimensions of the panels will remain identical to the standards already established by the brand: 6.3 inches for the smaller version and 6.9 inches for the Pro Max variant. The camera block on the back, although it will receive heavy updates to its internal components, will retain the same geometric shape as the last generation, ensuring that the product’s visual identity continues to be easily recognized by the public.
On the same topic: Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8 elevates the experience with foldable smartphones and surprises
Historic rescue brings back the transparent finish to cell phones
To conceive this new identity, the design team sought direct references from the late 1990s, drawing inspiration from the iconic iMac G3 computers and the original iBook, which shocked the market with their colorful and translucent plastic casings. At that time, this aesthetic boldness led by Steve Jobs and designer Jony Ive was fundamental in saving the company from bankruptcy by making technology more user-friendly, a nostalgic appeal that the manufacturer is now trying to replicate in the modern era of mobile telephony.
The highlight of this redesign will be a section of translucent glass positioned on the back of the device, exactly over the magnetic ring of the MagSafe system. Through this strategic window, consumers will be able to observe details of the internal engineering, such as the induction charging coil and adjacent microcircuits, delivering an industrial appearance that mixes sophistication and high technology.
End of the notch marks the arrival of a completely uninterrupted display
Another widely anticipated evolution for the premium 2026 crop is the total exclusion of the pill-shaped cutout, a feature that made its debut on the iPhone 14 Pro. Engineers are refining a mechanism capable of placing the selfie camera directly under the pixels of the OLED screen, making the component practically imperceptible while the user navigates through applications.
Industry experts calculate that this structural change will expand the useful viewing area by around 5%, offering a much cleaner space for consuming videos, playing games and reading. The biometric sensors required by the Face ID system will also migrate under the glass, although they may still leave a slight visible mark, indicating that the creation of a panel that is one hundred percent free of edges and holes will remain for decades to come.
To make this feat possible, the manufacturer entered into a partnership with Samsung Display, which will be responsible for providing high-quality OLED screens, preserving the 120 Hz ProMotion refresh rate to guarantee extreme fluidity. Hiding a lens under active pixels represents a colossal engineering hurdle, as the display material needs to become translucent in fractions of a second to let in light without blurring or distorting the final photograph.
Rear lenses gain mechanical adjustment for precise light control
The device’s photographic arsenal will undergo a formidable leap, led by a main sensor equipped with a variable aperture mechanism, giving photographers unprecedented control over light capture and depth of field. This mechanical tool, which has already been explored by Asian rivals such as Huawei and Samsung itself in its elite models, will allow the user to physically switch the lens aperture between f/1.4 and f/2.0.
More on this story: Gemini 3.7 Flash model arrives with reduced price and focus on developers
In everyday use, opening the lens to f/1.4 proves to be extremely advantageous in dark environments, as it absorbs much more light to cancel out digital noise, in addition to generating a very natural background blur in portraits. On the other hand, closing the mechanism to f/2.0 is the ideal setting for recording wide landscapes or photos with many people, ensuring that all elements of the scene remain perfectly in focus.
See Also
Apple releases iOS 26 update with adjustable clock on iPhone screen
End of the line: Xiaomi ends updates for 12 cell phones after the arrival of HyperOS 4
Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 3 breaks exclusivity and will be released simultaneously
Complementing the new mechanical opening, the camera module will deliver a package of sequential improvements:
Full coverage: Latest News (EN)
- The telephoto sensor will jump to 48 MP of resolution, maintaining the 5x optical zoom capability.
- The ultrawide lens will have a superior stabilization system, ideal for captures on the move.
- Recording 8K videos at 60 frames per second will become viable thanks to new hardware.
The fine tuning between these cutting-edge parts and the device’s software will be the biggest difference in the experience. Computational photography algorithms and tools like Cinema mode will be rewritten to take advantage of mechanical aperture, requiring rigorous factory calibration so that the transition between light levels occurs instantly and naturally for the consumer.
Two-nanometer architecture boosts processor performance
All this heavy lifting, especially the real-time processing of gigantic image and video files, will be supported by the upcoming A20 Pro chip. Manufactured under a 2-nanometer lithography process, this new electronic brain promises an exponential advance in both raw calculation speed and energy conservation.
Densifying transistors into a microscopic space will dramatically speed up locally performed artificial intelligence and machine learning tasks. This extra breath is absolutely vital to running the advanced camera features and deep integrations planned for the iOS 27 operating system, which will debut simultaneously with the new hardware.
Learn more: Humanoid robots will compete in new disciplines at the Beijing World Games
Revamped thermal structure promises to maximize battery life
To ensure that the cell phone can withstand a full day of intense use, the iPhone 18 Pro Max will house a battery covered by a stainless steel capsule, abandoning the traditional aluminum casing. This change of materials not only increases resistance against physical impacts by around 20%, but also optimizes heat dissipation by 15%, preventing the phone from losing performance during heavy games. Internal tests indicate that the Pro Max variant will carry a 4800 mAh cell, yielding up to 30 hours of mixed use, aided by a highly economical self-made 5G modem and an industrial process that uses 95% recycled components in the power modules.
Calendar changes affect the arrival of next smartphones
Thinking about 2026 and 2027, the Californian company intends to restructure its traditional advertising calendar. The commercial strategy will involve a new distribution window for the arrival of premium models from the Pro line and more affordable versions of the smartphone, changing the brand’s launch dynamics.
Material engineering ensures durability and flawless connectivity
The introduction of a glass window on the rear panel raised immediate suspicions about resistance to drops and possible blocking of the operator signal. However, informants linked to the supply chain guarantee that the prototypes survived rigorous stress tests, proving that the transparent area does not cause interference with cell phone, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth antennas, thanks to the application of microscopic filters that let radio waves pass through freely.
The strict IP68 certification against diving in water and dust will continue to be present, ensuring that the smartphone survives everyday accidents without major damage. The aerospace titanium chassis, praised for its balance between weight and durability, will remain exclusive to the Pro family, which should also bring back classic colors from the past in modern guises, including an updated, scratch-resistant version of the famous Jet Black finish.
